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Since I had to drop the LD CDi in for another service, blame the weekly 700+ mile journeys, I thought I'd take the opportunity to get a much closer look at the new Smart 45????
So first impressions ? In the flesh it looks basically like a chunky version of the 451 which is no bad thing
This one in the showroom rhd is a Prime model, the models are Prime, Passion and Poxy, sorry I mean Proxy
Bonnet catches are much easier to open................................by anyone
The bonnet pulls off in much the same way as the 451 but there aren't any mounting points, it just has rubber feet and just hangs down on it's straps
The boot glass now has a handle
And a single weird handle that works OK to release the tailgate :
OK now the inside, there are currently only three colour choices, Black leather and white as this one, black with bright orange seats and white seats with bright blue trim
Management said she thought it looked like a washing machine inside
The Tacho is really hard to read when driving and the little clock impossible all of the time ( this is a close up picture)
But there is one amazing new feature ????? A proper sun visor that swivels to the side window
Standard lights are not LED
LED lights at extra cost :
OK here is my Left Hand Drive German registered 1.0 Turbo Petrol 5 speed manual with something called a clutch pedal
Now please remove all sharp objects from near reach, then meditate for a moment or two and then very slowly focus on the next picture of the white and blue interior
OK you guessed I'm not a fan
I'm sure it's very trendy but it's about as practical as a chocolate fire guard
OK so how does it drive ???? I'm directly comparing it to the loan MHD petrol driven back to back and left hand drive doesn't make any difference to me, I have two left hand drive cars myself
The engine is a little quieter, the clutch is fairly light with a good biting point ( I never stalled it in town ) and the 5 speed box is quite snickerty, so far so good........
The ride is a big improvement on the 451, much less crashing and bouncing over the many large pot holes, with less road noise
The brakes seemed the same, still with drums at the back.
The stalks and controls are also of better quality, as is the multi function steering wheel, but I wasn't impressed with the HVAC controls, no doubt you'd get used to which button does what, but it's a truimph of style over function
The engine is a lot stronger than the MHD and hustles along at motorway speeds fine, it wasn't very windy this morning and I couldn't find any lorries to try out the standard cross wind assist feature ????????????
It likes to rev but I suspect doing that will destroy the fuel economy
Now the worst feature for me, due to the mileage I do, I need to check the oil weekly and in the 451 is a bit of pain, with me having part of an old broom handle to hold the engine flap up !
So I was hoping that they may have improved the design because it doesn't have an electronic oil gauge
Well I couldn't have been more wrong, it now has six fixings screws COUNT THEM
Each one with a very LO..............................NG thread
I have the new price and options list, later I'll go through it and give you some ideas of cost, auto will be +£995
So first impressions ? In the flesh it looks basically like a chunky version of the 451 which is no bad thing
This one in the showroom rhd is a Prime model, the models are Prime, Passion and Poxy, sorry I mean Proxy
Bonnet catches are much easier to open................................by anyone
The bonnet pulls off in much the same way as the 451 but there aren't any mounting points, it just has rubber feet and just hangs down on it's straps
The boot glass now has a handle
And a single weird handle that works OK to release the tailgate :
OK now the inside, there are currently only three colour choices, Black leather and white as this one, black with bright orange seats and white seats with bright blue trim
Management said she thought it looked like a washing machine inside
The Tacho is really hard to read when driving and the little clock impossible all of the time ( this is a close up picture)
But there is one amazing new feature ????? A proper sun visor that swivels to the side window
Standard lights are not LED
LED lights at extra cost :
OK here is my Left Hand Drive German registered 1.0 Turbo Petrol 5 speed manual with something called a clutch pedal
Now please remove all sharp objects from near reach, then meditate for a moment or two and then very slowly focus on the next picture of the white and blue interior
OK you guessed I'm not a fan
I'm sure it's very trendy but it's about as practical as a chocolate fire guard
OK so how does it drive ???? I'm directly comparing it to the loan MHD petrol driven back to back and left hand drive doesn't make any difference to me, I have two left hand drive cars myself
The engine is a little quieter, the clutch is fairly light with a good biting point ( I never stalled it in town ) and the 5 speed box is quite snickerty, so far so good........
The ride is a big improvement on the 451, much less crashing and bouncing over the many large pot holes, with less road noise
The brakes seemed the same, still with drums at the back.
The stalks and controls are also of better quality, as is the multi function steering wheel, but I wasn't impressed with the HVAC controls, no doubt you'd get used to which button does what, but it's a truimph of style over function
The engine is a lot stronger than the MHD and hustles along at motorway speeds fine, it wasn't very windy this morning and I couldn't find any lorries to try out the standard cross wind assist feature ????????????
It likes to rev but I suspect doing that will destroy the fuel economy
Now the worst feature for me, due to the mileage I do, I need to check the oil weekly and in the 451 is a bit of pain, with me having part of an old broom handle to hold the engine flap up !
So I was hoping that they may have improved the design because it doesn't have an electronic oil gauge
Well I couldn't have been more wrong, it now has six fixings screws COUNT THEM
Each one with a very LO..............................NG thread
I have the new price and options list, later I'll go through it and give you some ideas of cost, auto will be +£995
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